Strand handling apparatus



Oct. 6, 1936. 1w, D W ET AL 2,056,244

STRAND HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 10, 1934 23 INVENTORS J. W. ANDREWSS. T.' SWALLOW A TTORNEY Patented Oct. 6, 1936 UNITED STATES STRANDHANDLING APPARATUS John w. Andrews and Sidney 'r. Swallow, Westfield, N.J., assignors to Western Electric Com-'- pany, Incorporated, New York,N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 10, 1934, SerialNo. 752,432

Claims.

This invention relates to strand handling apparatus and moreparticularly to a'device for taking off a strand from a supply reel.

In some instances in a large variety of machines for handling and/ortreating strand materials, the supply of strand is wound on a supplyreel and is withdrawn therefrom through a flier rotating about thesupply. The action of the flier produces a twist in the strand for eachrevolution of the flier and as the diameter of the body of stranddiminishes the pitch of this twist shortens.

It is one object of the present invention to provide a flier take-01fdevice which will deliver strand from a supply reel with an unvaryingand predetermined pitch of twist.

One embodiment of the invention contemplates a device in which strand isbeing drawn through a take-off flier from a supply reel at constantlinear speed of the strand, theflier and the reel being driven atpredetermined speeds so related to each other and to the linear speed ofthe strand as to impose a twist upon the strand of predetermined pitchand with means whereby the speed of the reel may vary to compensate forthe diminishing diameter of the body of strand thereon.

The above and other objects of the invention will appear clearly fromthe following detailed description of one embodiment of the inventiontaken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which the singlefigure is a broken view in side elevation and partly in section of astrand take-01f device constructed in accordance with the invention.

In the embodiment herein disclosed, a supply reel 2i) rests at the lowerrim of its central aperture on a cone support 2|, which is rotatablymounted on a vertical stationary shaft 22, which in turn is rigidlysecured to any suitable supporting member 23 as by a nut 24. A sleevehaving a knurled handling portion 26 and a conical outer surface isrotatable on the shaft 22 and fits down into the upper end of thecentral aperture of the reel to center and steady the reel.

A-friction member 21 having a downwardly facing, plane, annular frictionface is secured to the under side of the conical support 2|. Acomplementary friction member 28 has a complementary upward facingfriction surface, an external peripheral pulley groove and an internalball race to receive anti-friction balls 29. The balls 29 also run in araceway formed in a collar 30 secured around the shaft 22 and supportedon a spacing block 3| resting on the support 23.

A driving belt 32 runs in the pulley groove of the member 28 and also ona pulley 33 secured to a drive shaft 34 which has a step bearing in themember 23, the shaft 34 being driven by a.

belt 35 and a pulley 36 from any convenient power source not shown. Theshaft is also journalled at M in any convenient support 45'.

A flier 3! having a take of'f sheave 38 and a guide sheave 39 mountedthereon is rotatably journalled at 4U, 40 to carry the sheave 38 aroundthe reel 2c. The flier is also provided with a drive pulley M driven bya belt 42 and a pulley 43'. In describing the operation of the device itwill be assumed that a strand 58 is'being drawn. ofi

operation, the flier is driven counterclockwise to unwind the strandfrom the reel. The reel is also driven counterclockwise and tl'iedifference of the rotational velocities of the flier and reel isdetermined by the linear speed with which the strandis being withdrawnand by the diameter of the body of strand remaining on the rear. Thelinear velocity of the strand is assumed to be constant. The rotationalvelocity of the reel changes as the diameter of the strand supply on thereel diminishes. The member 28 is driven at constant speed and a littlemore slowly than the necessary speed of the reel, and member 2!, 2Tslips on the member 28 under the pull of the strand on the reel.

The lever advantage of the strand on the reel will diminish as the reelempties, tending to increase the tension required on the strand, but theweight of the reel and strand supply body diminishes substantiallylikewise, diminishing the friction between the members 21 and 28 and sothe tension required to drive the reel less and less ahead of the member28 is held substantially constant.

Under these conditions the strand will be drawn from the reel atconstant linear speed, under constant tension and with an imposed twistof constant pitch, and the reel will run ahead of the flier in rotationby a decreasing amount to compensate for strand being taken oif atconstant linear speed from the diminishing supply.

In another mode of operation, the supply may be thought of as woundcounterclockwise on the reel. counterclockwise rotation of the flierwill then tend to wind strand on the reel, but the reel in this case isdriven faster than the flier and the oflice of the flier is in effectmerely to take up the slack thus produced and to provide tension on thestrand being drawn ofi. Here again the difference in speeds of the flierand reel is determined by the constant linear speed of the strand, theconstant rotational speed of the flier, and the diminishing diameter ofthe strand supply.

In either mode of operation, the strand is withdrawn at constant linearspeed and the flier is driven at constant rotational speed, so that thestrand as delivered at the outlet of the flier has a twist of constantpitch, particularly an important factor in the manufacure of some kindsof cable for telephone and other communications uses. The supply reel isalso driven by a friction slip drive or other variable means from arotating member (28) whose speed is determined by the speed of the flierand by the speed of the strand in such a way as to impose the requiredtension on the strand and to permit the reel to lead the member by avarying amount.

The embodiment of the invention herein disclosed is illustrative onlyand may be widely modified and departed from in many ways withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as pointed out inand limited only by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A strand take-off device having a supply reel supporting memberrotatable about a vertical axis and free to move vertically, a drivingmember rotatable about the same axis and on which the supporting memberrests with frictional engagement therewith only, and slippable frictionmeans between the supporting member and the driving member, the partsbeing so constructed and arranged that the frictional coupling of thedriving member to the supporting member will diminish as the weight ofthe contents of a reel supported on the supporting member diminishes bywithdrawal of the contents.

2. A strand take-01f device having a supply reel supporting memberrotatable about a vertical axis and free to move vertically, a drivingmember rotatable about the same axis and on which the supporting memberrests with frictional engagement therewith only, and slippable frictionmeans between the supporting member and the driving member, the partsbeing so constructed and arranged that the frictional coupling of thedriving member to the supporting member will diminish as the weight ofthe contents of a reel supported on the supporting member diminishes bywithdrawal of the contents, all in combination with a rotatable flierpositioned to revolve a strand guide coaxially about a reel positionedon the supporting member, and means to drive the flier at constantspeed.

3. In a strand handling apparatus, a. supply reel holder rotatable abouta substantially vertical axis, and means to support and rotate theholder comprising a driven rotating member upon which the holder issupported and with which the holder has frictional engagement only, theparts being so constructed and arranged that the resistance of theholder to sliding on the member diminishes as the weight of the contentsof a reel held in the holder diminishes by withdrawal of strand from thereel.

4. In a strand handling apparatus, a supply reel holder rotatable abouta substantially vertical axis, a take oif flier rotatable coaxiallyabout the holder, and means to support and rotate the holder comprisinga driven rotating member upon which the holder is supported and withwhich the holder has frictional engagement only, the parts being soconstructed and arranged that the resistance of the holder to sliding onthe member diminishes as the weight of the contents of a reel held inthe holder diminishes by withdrawal of strand from the reel.

5. In a strand handling apparatus, a supply reel holder rotatable abouta substantially vertical axis, a take off flier rotatable coaxiallyabout the holder, means to drive the flier at constant speed, and meansto support and rotate the holder comprising a driven rotating memberupon which the holder is supported and with which the holder hasfrictional engagement only, the parts being so constructed and arrangedthat the resistance of the holder to sliding on the member diminishes asthe weight of the contents of a reel held in the holder diminishes bywithdrawal of strand from the reel.

JOHN W. ANDREWS. SIDNEY T. SWALLOW.

